What You Can Eat to Live a Long Life
What You Can Eat to Live a Long Life – Longevity researcher, Dan Buettner, in his recently published book, The Blue Zones Diet, examines the diets of people around the world where unusually high number of people are living beyond hundred years.
Buettner’s book is the result of his 10-year project with the National Geographic, for which, he looked into the so-called “blue zones” where people lived to be over a hundred. He found five longevity zones around the world, Okinawa, Japan; Sardinia, Italy; Loma Linda, California; Icaria, Greece; and the Nicoya Peninsula of Costa Rica. After analyzing what these centenarians were eating, Buettner found that over 90% of them ate a diet that was predominantly plant-based. Surprisingly, the diet was also high in carbohydrates, with almost 60% of the calorie intake coming from whole grains, corn, sweet potatoes in Okinawa. Buettner also found that beans were a longevity staple around the world.
Each diet from these different blue zones, had its own staples that contributed to health and longevity. For instance, in Sardinia, Italy, it was olive oil and greens, in Okinawa, it was tofu and sweet potatoes, in the Nicoya Peninsula, it was squash and yams, while in Loma Linda, California, it was salmon and oatmeal.
Buettner found that drinking some teas daily also helped improve people’s health by reducing inflammation and high blood pressure via their anti-inflammatory and diuretic properties. What were these teas? Rosemary, sage, and mint. But more important than diet, according to Buettner, is the right environment that promotes a long life.
Lifestyle factors that Buettner thinks contributed to a long lifespan among these centenarians are a sense of purpose, a slower pace of life, strong family bonds, and daily physical activity.
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